24 julho 2015

a tragédia grega

Perdoem-me o título um pouco estafado mas é o que melhor se encaixa nesta breve história da Grécia contada pelo Taki.
Um excerto:
...
Two men dominate the post-colonel period: Constantine Karamanlis and Andreas Papandreou. Both men started their own political parties, New Democracy for the former, PASOK for the latter. Karamanlis was center-right, Papandreou center-left. Both got very rich in office, and both corrupted the patronage system to the maximum. Then Karamanlis, a man I knew very well, and one who had benefited from my father’s largesse only to turn against him once he was no longer needed, had a brilliant idea. He proposed to the powers of the EEC, as it was then called, to allow Greece to join the then six nations, thus ensuring no ambitious colonel would try to grab power by force of arms. The EEC welcomed us with open arms. European money began to flow into a poor country whose main exports were olives and fruit and whose economy was based on tourism and shipping.

In 1981, the established EU Greek nation decided to swing left. Andreas Papandreou came into office and a real Greek upheaval took place. Papandreou established a core constituency of voters by enriching them for life. The trick was an easy one. Tony Blair tried it years later. Close to 25 percent of Greeks were employed by the state, with pensions worthy of far, far richer nations, and leaders of civil unions enjoying double or triple pensions for retiring at age 50. With 25 percent of the electorate in his pocket for life, Papandreou then proceeded to nationalize industries, milk the EU treasury, and flirt with Middle Eastern dictators. He personally became very rich, and even divorced his American wife for a very generously endowed airline hostess he met while flying to an EU meeting who went by the nickname Mimi Big Tits. He married Mimi, survived all sorts of riots against his corrupt policies, and finally expired, his face buried in Mimi’s bosom. After his demise she became a nonperson, as in Stalinist societies. Both Karamanlis and Papandreou were succeeded by their nephew and son, respectively, becoming prime ministers—which illustrates a certain lack of imagination on the part of a battered electorate. Then came the 2004 Athens Olympics and the crowning of Greece as a rich, modern European nation covered in glory. The Greek state spent like there was no tomorrow. And, as it turned out, there was not.

Taki

1 comentário:

Anónimo disse...

Olha o Taki da Spectator.

A Grécia tem todos os defeitos de Portugal, só que a dobrar, para se ter uma noção da coisa... Não admira que a xuxalhada tuga goste tanto daquilo. Eu também gosto, mas de lá passar férias, bem entendido. O PS também tem o clã Soares, sendo por isso o partido mais "grego" do país. Um partido que continua a ser largamente controlado pelo "bochechas" & Ca. Um exemplo de "democraticidade" e "renovação".

Mas a Grécia também tem coisas boas, tais como a história antiga, os monumentos clássicos, os gregos são simpáticos, a paisagem é muito bonita, as praias são óptimas, e a água dos mares que banham a Grécia é muito calma e quentinha. Só não dá para quem gosta de surf, e de trabalhar...